Man saved from quake-flattened Masjid on Indonesia island

Indonesian soldiers have pulled a man alive from the rubble of a large mosque flattened by an earthquake, while thousands of homeless locals wait for aid and stranded tourists’ camp at beaches and in the lobbies of damaged hotels.

Video shot by a soldier shows rescuers shouting “Thank God” as a man is pulled from a space under the Jabal Nur mosque’s flattened roof on Monday.

“You’re safe, mister,” says one of the soldiers as emotion overcomes the saved man.

Disaster officials did not say how many people they believe were buried beneath the ruins of the Jabal Nur mosque, but a rescue worker told The Associated Press about 50 people were praying inside when it collapsed.

Disaster agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said he hopes “a lot” of people can be saved from the mosque.

Authorities expect the death toll, which stood at 98 on Tuesday, to rise.

The north of the island of Lombok has been devastated by the magnitude 7.0 quake that struck on Sunday night and rescuers are faced with thousands of damaged buildings while still struggling to reach all the affected areas.